Broncos OLB pair Jonathon Cooper, Nik Bonitto looking to build off productive years: “I’m just going to keep rocking”

Easton Stick thought maybe he’d step up past the pressure applied by a blitzing Alex Singleton in the first quarter Sunday. The Los Angeles Chargers quarterback moved to his left, then tried to change direction only to find No. 0 for the Broncos in position and waiting. Stick dropped to the ground, serving up the easiest sack of the year for Denver outside linebacker Jonathon Cooper.

It’s a bit ironic, perhaps, because Cooper’s rarely been handed anything in his NFL career. The 2021 seventh round draft pick was the No. 239 selection in his draft class. He played right from the start — 16 games in 2021 and 14 in 2022, including 14 total starts — but was a role player mostly and dealt with injuries along the way.

This year, he’s turned in a healthy and available third season and the production has followed. The sack against Stick gave him 8.5 for the year, four more than his first two seasons combined and the most by a Broncos defender in a season since Von Miller finished 2018 with 14.5 and Bradley Chubb added 12.

“It means a lot,” Cooper said after the game. “I feel my teammates and coaches believe in me and the type of player that I am. My goal for this season was eight or 10, so I’m trying to get to double digits. I’m trying to get to that 10 mark. I’m just going to keep rocking. Keep going, man.

I’m really happy for myself, but I’m more happy for these wins that we’re getting. “Any way that I can help the team win is what I’m trying to do.” Of course, Cooper and the rest of the Broncos in the moments after beating the Chargers and improving to 8 8 on the year. There’s no doubt, however, that Cooper took a big step forward both as a player and leader this fall.

The same can be said of the outside linebacker group as a whole, which features Cooper, fellow 2021 draft pick Baron Browning and 2022 draft pick Nik Bonitto. Those three stepped into the top roles earlier in the season when Denver jettisoned veterans Randy Gregory and Frank Clark in a two week span.

“We didn’t go on a youth movement,” head coach Sean Payton protested Monday when asked about the move to younger players. “It just so happened to look that way. We just moved on from some other players. (Cooper) is playing well, and it’s really important to him. I would say he’s extremely physical.

He’s kind of an edge setter. “You kind of know what you’re getting from him week to week, and that’s a very valuable trait.” Cooper’s got a sack in three straight games down the stretch of the season. As impressive as anything: He’s played 74% of the Broncos’ defensive snaps and hasn’t missed a game.

“With ‘Coop,’ I always felt like it was just opportunity,” Bonitto said after the game. “Watching him last year, just, I don’t know if y’all seen it, but he’s always been doing the things he’s doing (now). He’s always been consistent whether it’s in the run or the pass. I feel like this year he’s just got a big role and a big opportunity and we’re seeing what Coop can do.” Denver has started to see what Bonitto can do, too.

After an up and down rookie season in which the Broncos’ top pick in the 2022 draft saw his playing time dwindle, Bonitto’s taken a big step forward this fall. He returned Sunday off an MCL injury that cost him two games and logged a pair of tackles for loss over 40 snaps. “Yeah, it sucked,” he said of missing time before acknowledging he was still playing through pain.

“I really did try to come back (last) week, but just knowing how my knee felt today and knowing how it might have felt last week, I’m not upset that they held me out. But I definitely would have tried to help the team out a little bit.” He’s done that with 7.5 sacks, a team best 12 tackles for loss and the ability to consistently put pressure on quarterbacks.

“Looking back this year, I left a lot of food on the table and that keeps me fueled and keeps me going all the time,” he said. “Definitely going back this offseason and putting in more work than last year. I’m not satisfied. I want to keep making more plays.” Same for Cooper, as the young duo head into the offseason with Browning as keys to Denver’s defensive future.

“You have to just keep working hard and trust the process, as cliche as that sounds,” Cooper said. “Put in the work day after day and it’ll pay off. I feel like hard work will never betray you. All this shows me is that I need to continue working hard so I can keep getting better.”.